Clamp for clothesline props



Aug. 30, 1949. J. F. STERLING CLAMP FOR `CLOTHESIJINE PROFS Filed May 29 Patented Aug. 3Q, 1949 UNITED srATEs I 'CLAMP ron orlo'rncsanas`I rRoPs A John VFrank Sterling, Broomall, Pa.

. applicati@ May 29, 1947, serial No. 751,170'

vin the form of va deten-t.

A further'jpurpose is to provide a rope clamping device for attachment to a clothesline prop or pole which-consists of a mounting plate to which is pivoted a clamping member, the upper end of which i-s adapted to engage and hold a rope and the lower end of'which has a recess adapted to engage a projection upon the mounting plate to provide a detent for holding the clamp in position.

A further purpose is to provide a mounting plate for attachment to a clothesline prop with a pivoted clamping member carried by the mounting plate, one end of the clamping member being adapted to engage and be securely held by a projection upon the mounting plate and a recess in the end of the clamp arm, and a ange upon the clamp arm providing iinger engagement for moving the pivot clamp into and out of locking position.

A further purpose is to provide a flange upon a clamping end of a pivoted clamp to securely engage a clothesline to hold the clothesline in engagement with the clamp so as to prevent lateral movement of the clamp with respect to the clothesline and at the same time prevent undue marring of the clothesline.

Further purposes will appear in the speciiicaN tion and in the claim.

I have preferred to illustrate my invention by showing one form only, but illustrating a prac-- tical device which Well demonstrates the principles of my invention and one that meets the needs or service.

Describing in illustration, but not in limitation and referring to the drawings:

Figure 1 is a perspective view illustrating a fenced lawn on which clothesline hangers are supplied to support the line from one side to another, with clothesline poles or props in position of use.

Figure 2 is a fragmentary perspective View on a larger scale, of my improved clamping device in position on the end of a clothesline prop with 1 Claim. l (Cl. 248-353) the'clamping member engaging a portion of fragmentaryclothesline or rope.

Figure 25L is a fragmentary perspective view, similar to Eigure 2, but with the pivoted clamping membershown out of `clamping position.

Figure Bis a fragmentary detailed perspective of aricthesline prop or pole.

Figure l is a perspective View of the mounting plate used in. my invention, j

'Figure 5 is a perspective view of the pivoted clamping arm in a position to be attached to the mounting plate. Y

Figure '5 is a fragmentary sectional elevation taken en some such line as 6--5 of Figure 2. y

n ,Myclarnping unit is intended to' be fastened tothe rope-engaging end of a clothesline prop in order that the prop can be Securely fastened to the clothesline when the prop is in position of use to support a clothesline carrying a heavy load, and to prevent sliding movement of the prop with respect to the line and prevent the line from dropping too close to the ground surface where the clothes or articles upon the line may become soiled. Y

My clamping unit l0 comprises a mounting plate Ii, which has its outer end provided with f, mounting plate by means of a rivet I8.

a V notch i2. The V notch I2 corresponds with a V notch I 3, usually found in the end of a clothes prop of the ordinary variety, here illustrated at le. When the mounting plate ll is secured to the end of the prop, the V shaped member I 2 of the plate corresponds in position with the notch i3 of the prop. For illustration purposes, have shown in Figure 4 the mounting plate l'l detached from the swinging clamp l5 illustrated in Figure 5.

When the clamping unit is fastened to the end or the clothesline prop, the swinging clamp has been pivoted at I5 in the opening l1 Yin the The swinging clamp and the mounting plate which comprise a unit will be fastened to the end of a clothesline prop by means of screws or the like I9 to securely hold the unit in place upon the prop. Y

It will be noted that the swinging clamp at its upper end extension is extended laterally to 20 and forwardly at 2| and provided with an outwardly extending ange 22 for rope engagement. Between the forwardly extending end 2| and the pivot i8, the clamp is providedwith an angular surface 23, which corresponds and registers with one of the sides of V notch l2 of the mounting plate Il and the prop notch I3.

By providing the flange extension 22, I nd that when the clamp engages the rope there is not so much danger of marring the rope as there would be if the ange were not present. In the lower end of the clamping unit, the mounting plate carries a projection 24, which engages in a recess 25 in the lower end of the swinging clamp arm 26. The lower end of the clamp arm is also provided with a ange extension 21 by which finger engagement is provided to pivotally swing the clamp into locking engagement with the rope at the extension end 22 and to securely hold the end 22 against the clothesline rope in position in the V notch of the mounting plate adjacent the V notch in the prop end. When the pivoted locking member is swung into engagement with the rope, the other end of clamp unit which carries the detent in the form of a projection and recess 24 and 25 will securely hold the clamp in position by spring of the metal. The clamp cannot be dislodged from its contact with the rope except by applying pressure against the ange 21 to swing it out of position and thereby free the clamp and the prop from engagement with the clothesline.

In operation, after the clamp unit has been attached to the clothesline prop or pole, the user will place the V notch at the top of the unit about the clothesline and then swing the clamp end 22 about the line by pressing the flange 21 with engagement finger to grip the clothesline and when the clamp engages the line the clamp arm will snap into locking position and cause the end thereof to be secured against the line.

In view of my invention and disclosure variations and modifications to meet individual whim 4 or particular need will doubtless become evident to others skilled in the art, to obtain all or part of the benets of my invention Without copying the structure shown, and I, therefore, claim all such insofar as they fall Within the reasonable spirit and scope of my claim.

Having thus described my invention what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patentis:

A clamping unit for releasably securing a clothesline to a clothesline prop, comprising a mounting plate adapted to be mounted on the clothesline prop and having a projection on its surface, and a clamp pivoted to the plate intermediate its ends and having on one side of the pivot a flanged finger adapted releasably to secure the clothesline against the prop when the clamp is closed and on the other side of the pivot an arm whose surface is recessed to cooperate with the projection to hold the clamp closed.

JOHN FRANK STERLING.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 365,158 Van Duzer June 21, 1887 989,368 Knoder Apr, 11, 1911 1,035,706 I-Iunt Aug. 13, 1912 1,789,765 McKinney Jan. 20, 1931 2,190,876 Kroenke et al. Feb. 20, 1940 2,379,377 Riegel June 26, 1945 

